Safety of Journalists: Protecting media to protect democracy
High-level Conference, Vienna, 4 November 2022

To mark the tenth anniversary of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists  a high-level conference entitled "Safety of Journalists: Protecting media to protect democracy" took place in Vienna on 4 November 2022. Organised by the Federal Ministry for European and International Affairs in cooperation with the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), it brought together more than 400 participants, including Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Media, key stakeholders from international organisations, civil society and academia.

The safety of journalists is an essential condition for the realisation of the universal, inalienable right to freedom of expression and of the media, as stipulated in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Human rights and democracy are only guaranteed if journalists can carry out their work freely and without fear for their safety. However, they risk their lives every day, especially in conflict situations. They are increasingly exposed to political persecution, online violence, intimidation and surveillance.

This year, by 1 November, 76 journalists have already lost their lives because of their job, 10 of them while working to cover the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. Between 2006 and 2021, more than 1,200 journalists were killed, with those responsible going unpunished in approximately 86% of cases

The conference adopted a political declaration reaffirming the commitment of the signatories to enhance the protection of journalists and strengthen media freedom. As of 4 November, 57 countries had expressed their support for this declaration. It remains open for support by states.

Furthermore, 37 states, international organisations and civil society organisations delivered concrete pledges in support of media freedom and the safety of journalists. 28 Ministers and Deputy Ministers expressed their personal commitment either in person or through video messages. The video messages are available here.

The Federal Minister for Media, Susanne Raab, presented the Austrian pledges on behalf of Federal Minister of European and International Affairs, Alexander Schallenberg. These included the provision of 150.000 Euros of funding to a UN Women project supporting women-led media initiatives about women’s rights in Afghanistan. Furthermore, the Austrian Foreign Ministry will support a training course provided by the Austrian Armed Forces that aims at educating participants to deal effectively with risk-associated and critical situations while being deployed in hostile environments. The training will include a gender-sensitive approach, and we will strongly encourage the participation of female journalists. Finally, Austrian development cooperation will increasingly seek to include media development as part of efforts strengthening democratic governance.

For more detailed background on the context and the objectives of the conference, please refer to the concept note and the programme.

Pre-Conference on 3 November 2022:

In preparation for the conference, UNESCO organised regional and thematic consultations in Africa, Asia, Europe and Latin America and the Arab Region. Building on the findings of these consultations, selected representatives of the stakeholders, especially of civil society organisations, academia, journalists and students gathered in Vienna on 3 November 2022 for a Pre-Conference to develop concrete recommendations for improving the implementation of the UN Plan of Action.